Athletic timer



J. H. STEELE ,ATHLETIC TIMER June 24, 1930.

Filed Feb. 28, 1928 gmmtcz Patented June 24, 1930 'rear eprice JAMES H. STEELE, OF DENVER COLORADO ATHLETIC TIMER Application filed February 28, 1928. Serial No. 257,606.

This invention: relates to improvements in timers for athletic events. Y

Intheplaying of games such as foot ball and basket ball, the games are dividedinto A6 periods of a given length. It frequently happens, however', that for various reasons time must bejtakeniout and this requires careful and painstaking effort on the part of thetime keeper.` l'

It is the'obj ect of Vthisinvention to produce a timing device comprising a clock gear train having means for selectively moving any one of two pointers over a graduated dial indieating` elapsed time in minutes, one of these pointers can beused for indicating the time actually played and the other the time taken out so that the sum of the two readings will give the actual length of each period. Means is provided for quickly connecting'one pointer to the clock arbor and disconnecting the other pointer and for applying a friction brake to the disconnected pointer so that it will be held against accidental movement while disconnected from 2,5 the clock arbor.

In order lto more clearly vdescribe my invention, reference will be had to the accompanying drawing in which one embodiment thereof has been illustrated, and in which: v Fig. 1 is a side elevation of my improved athletic timer, portions being broken away to more clearly disclose the construction;

Fig. 2 is a section taken on line 2-2, Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is a section taken on line 3--3, Fig. 2; and

Fig. 3 is a section taken on line 3 3, FiO'. 3. Y

s the clock gear train employed is old and well known no attempt has been made to illustrate it in detail, and therefore only such parts thereof have been shown as cooperate with my specific improvement. Nu-

meral 1 represents a base on which is supy"i5 ported a casing 2. Located within the casing 1s a frame comprising members 3 and l to which the gear train is secured in the usual manner. A barrel 5. contains a spring and has secured to it a great wheel 6 which meshes with a pinion 7 on arbor 8. The

escapement has not been shown but may be operated through wheel 9. In this particular embodiment arbor 8 will be presumed to rotate once every hour and corresponds to the ordinary minute handl arbor. Secured to the outer end of arbor 8 isa gear wheel 10, and an arm 11 which has one end provided with a hub 12 through which the end of arbor' 8 is inserted. This arm is held in place by apin 13. The free end of arm 11 is provided with a downwardly extending pintle 14 on which is journalled a compound gear wheel consisting of a` toothed gear 15 'that meshes with gear 10 and a friction gear 16, Whose periphery is tl-shaped. The outer edge may be formed from a rubber ring 17 if desired. Two arbors 18 and 19 are journalled in suitable bearings in members 3 and et and extend throughthe back 20 of the casing and through the dial 21. The rear end of arbor; 18 and 19 are provided with knurled heads 22 and 23 b means of which they may be rotated for t e purpose of setting Vthe pointers to Zero. Secured to the front ends of larbors 18 and 19 are pointers 24; and 25.

Pointer 24 has its arbor concentric with dial 21 and its point travels over the scale 26, which is divided into sixty divisions, each of which represents one minute.l Pointer 25 has its arbor 19 eccentric with respect to dial 21 and its point travels over the scale 27 which maybe divided into minut-e spaces. Pointer 25 must, of course, be shorter than pointer 21.1-, but can be made longer than shown. Arbors 18 and 19 are provided respectively with friction gear wheels 28 and 29 whose peripheral surfacesr'havev V-shapedgrooves with which the friction tire 17 on gea-r 16 may cooperate. By moving the arm f 11, Wheel 16 may be brought into contact with either-one of gears 28 and 29. Avlever 30 is pivoted at 31 and extends through a slot in the casing terminating in a handle A spring 33 has its ends attached-to pin 34 on arm 11v and pin 35 on lever 30, and is under tension. When lever 30 is in the position shown in Fig. 3, spring 33 will pass over the center of arbor 8 and will move arm 11 so ask to bring wheel 16 into operative engagement with gear 28 a-nd therefore when am, Said gearmheel arbor 8 rotates, pointer 24 will also be rotated. A spring 36 has its center portion vsoldered or otherwise secured to arm 1l, and

the ends of this spring extend across wheels 28 and 29 and when wheel 10 is moved into contact with gear 28, spring 36 will engage wheel 29 to serve as a friction brake and when gear 16 is moved into o rative relation with gear 29, spring 36 wil contact with wheel 28.

If handle 30 is moved downwardly from the position shown in Fig. 3, the center of spring 33 will pass the center of arbor 8 and as soon as itpasses below arbor 8, arm 11 will be moved counter clockwise by a snap motion and gear 16 will come into operative engagement with wheel 29 and at the same time a lbrake will be applied to wheel 28. It is evident therefore t t by simpl moving lever 30 up or down, either one o pointers 24 or 25. may be made operative and the other clamped againstg movement by the brake spring 36. y

`The actual tinieof playing may be indicated by pointerV 24 and time out by pointer 25.` At the beginning of each period the pointers can be returned to zero position bymeans ofthe caps 22 and 23.

It is apparent that the saine results may be obtained by specificall different means and therefore the examp e shown and de scribed should be considered as illustrative enig. n

aving d the invention what is claimed as nevirvis:y f

l. A device of the class described com- 'sing, in combination, a clock gear train ving an arbor that rotates at a uniform Speed, two ind` dently movable inters,

anA arm rotatab yr secured to the arbor, a gear wheel carried by the free end of the operatively connected with a similar gear on Ythe arbor whereby it be rotated from the arbor, and 4'means for operatively connecting the gear wheel on the end of the arm with either om of the pointers and for simultaneously applying a clamping device to the other peloter Y 2. A device. of the class described comrising, inv Combinatiom-a clock gear train an ,arbor that is rotated at a uniform speed, twopointers mounted for rotatien about the axes of spaced pivots, a friction gear wheel secured to each inter pivot, an arm havin one end pivote to the rotatable varboran the other end freely movable, a gear lrotatably secured to the free end of the arm a gear carried bythe arbor, said gears being operatively connected, a friction gear wheel carried by the free end of. the arm, and with the gear on theffme end of the arm so as to be rotated thereby, said friction gear wheelon the arm being adapted to separately engage the fric` tion gear wheels on the pointer pivots, and means for moving said arm about the arbor so as to bring the friction gear wheel carried by it intol engagement with either one of the gears carried by the inter pivots.

3. A' device of the css described comprising, in combination, a clock gear train having an arborthat is rotated ,at` a uniform s d, two pointers mounted for rotation abiit the axes of spaced pivots, a friction gear wheel secured to each tpointer p ivot, an arm having one end pivote to the rotatable arbor and the other end freely movab a gear rotatably secured to the free end o the arm, a gear carried by the arborz said gears bei operatively connected, a friction gear whd carried by the free end of tha arm, and connected wi the gear on` the free end of the arm so as to be rotated thereby, said friction gear wheelon the arm adapted to separately engage the friotioli gear' wheels on the pointer pivots, and means for moving saidarmabout the arbor, so as to bring the friction gear wheel can.. ried by it into e r s of the gears carried y the pointers and for applying a `friction brake to the pointer not connected with the friction gear.

In testimony whereof I aix m sluture.

JAMES H. T LE.

t with either one` 

